I wonder if there is a somewhere
by ShelbyandRachelforever
Summary: Rachel is in her first year of college and Shelby walks back into her life one night. Will Shelby walk away again?
1. Chapter 1

**This was removed from the site so I had to repost it.**

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><p><em>Sometimes I think about you.<em>  
><em>Wonder if you're out there somewhere thinkin' about me.<em>  
><em>And would you even recognize,<em>  
><em>The woman that your little girl has grown up to be.<em>  
><em>Cuz I look in the mirror and all I see,<em>  
><em>Are your brown eyes looking back at me.<em>  
><em>They're the only thing you ever gave to me at all.<em>

Rachel's softly sweet voice filled the bar, captivating the each and every person in the room. No one moved in inch, no one asked for another beer, no one made their way to the door. They watched as the sorrowful girl sang on about the one person missing in her life. The one person who walked out on her so many times in high school. The one person she needed tonight.

Rachel was doing it all, going to school full time, auditions in her down time and singing in bars each night to get extra money so she didn't have to rely on her dads so much. Kurt had come with her to NYADA but left 2 months later as he got the role of Fiyero in Wicked. Rachel had auditioned for Elphaba but was told she needed a little more work in the acting department. They loved her voice but she wasn't what they were looking for. It hurt Rachel to be told that but it was alright because she still had her dreams and wasn't going to give up on them. Broadway would be hers one day just not today.

_Oh I hear the weather's nice in California. There's sunny skies as far as I can see._  
><em>If you ever come back home to Carolina.<em>  
><em>I wonder what you'd say to me.<em>

The 18 year old wasn't the only lonely heart in New York. Shelby wandered the dark and slick streets, looking for a place to bring her solace in this crazy world that she created. Why she kept walking out on Rachel, she had no idea. The girl was everything she wanted but Shelby couldn't let herself get close to Rachel. Sure she wasn't a baby anymore but she was still her daughter. As she continued her walk, Shelby was stopped by the distant singing. She knew who that voice belonged too.

"It couldn't be." Shelby whispered to she was right, it was Mother's Day after all and Shelby was drowning in self pity of not having Rachel or Beth with her to celebrate. She was sure it was just her brain playing tricks on her but she still had to find out.

Walking across the street, Shelby followed the voice until she came to a stop right in front of the small bar. Through the window, she saw her little girl. She sounded amazing but looked even better. Rachel seemed like she was doing well for herself and even looked back remembering the times she sang in bars during her college years to earn an extra buck. She watched the petite girl's fingers strum over the guitar and wondered if she should go in. Rachel probably hated her but Shelby was going to hate herself even more if she allowed this chance to slip between her fingers.

Pushing the door open, Shelby was instantly pulled into the trance Rachel had created. Sitting at the bar, she watched as Rachel performed.

_I think about how it ain't fair._  
><em>That you weren't there to braid my hair like mothers do.<em>  
><em>You weren't around to cheer me on.<em>  
><em>Help me dress for my high school prom like mothers do.<em>  
><em>Did you think I didn't need you here.<em>  
><em>To hold my hand, to dry my tears.<em>  
><em>Did you even miss me through the years at all?<em>

"What can I get you?" The bartender whispered.

"Her." Shelby whispered back, nodding towards Rachel. "I want to talk to her."

"Who, Rachel?"

"Yes."

"Then go up to her after she's done. Her two hours is up in 5 minutes." The bartender said, finding this whole conversation odd. He also couldn't help but notice how much the two looked a like. When Shelby didn't ask for a drink, he went back to serve other customers.

_Oh I hear the weather's nice in California. There's sunny skies as far as I can see._  
><em>If you ever come back home to Carolina.<em>  
><em>I wonder what you'd say to me.<em>

_Forgiveness._  
><em>Such a simple word.<em>  
><em>But its so hard to do.<em>  
><em>When you've been hurt.<em>

_Oh I hear the weather's nice in California._  
><em>And just in case you're wondering about me.<em>  
><em>From now on I won't be in Carolina<em>  
><em>Your little girl is off...<em>  
><em>Your little girl is off...<em>  
><em>Your little girl is off to Tennessee<em>

Both Rachel and Shelby had tears in the corners of their eyes as Rachel perfectly sang the last note. The crowd cheered and even a few stood up.

"Thank you." Rachel smiled into the microphone. She stood up and placed the guitar against the wall and walked back to take the microphone off the stand. "This next song, is one that is close to my heart and always reminds me that there will be light at the end of a dark and lonely road. That someday there is a time for all of us."

_There's a place for us_  
><em> Somewhere a place for us<em>  
><em> Peace and quiet and open air<em>  
><em> Wait for us<em>  
><em>Somewhere<em>

Rachel began to sing the next line but was stopped when she heard someone else joining in.

_There's a time for us_  
><em> Someday a time for us<em>  
><em> Time together with time to spare<em>  
><em> Time to learn, time to care<em>  
><em>Someday!<em>

Shelby mustered up all her courage and walked towards the makeshift stage, singing to her daughter. Rachel was stunned and almost forgot what she was singing.

_Somewhere_  
><em>We'll find a new way of living<em>

_We'll find a way of forgiving_  
><em> Somewhere<em>

Shelby reached Rachel and stood in front of her, reaching for her hand.

_There's a place for us_  
><em> A time and place for us<em>  
><em> Hold my hand and we're halfway there<em>  
><em> Hold my hand and I'll take you there<em>  
><em> Somehow<em>  
><em> Someday<em>  
><em>Somewhere...<em>

The impromptu duet was well received by the customers and some even shouted for an encore. Rachel dropped Shelby's hand and turned around to pack up her guitar. Grabbing her purse and school bag, Rachel turned back to Shelby, finally addressing her.

"What are you doing here?"

"I heard you singing from the street and wanted to come in and talk to you."

"About what?"

"I made a mistake."

"You made several." Rachel corrected as the walked to the bartender who paid Rachel her money and the girl continued for the door.

"I know and I am sorry." Shelby exclaimed as they got outside.

"Sorry can't fix things. You can't just walk out of my life, come back in, sing a fucking song with me and try to make it work with me." Rachel yelled, spinning on her heel to look at her mother. "You can't keep doing that to me. When you came back to Ohio to teach at McKinley, you said you wanted to reach out to me but all you did was worry about Beth and Quinn and sleeping with Puck."

"You told me during your private rehearsal that there wasn't a place for us."

"To be a family right away. That shouldn't have stopped you from trying."

"I didn't know what you wanted Rachel. I thought that you asking me to write you a reference letter to NYADA was your way of telling me that we can try but after that you acted as though I wasn't even around. You wouldn't even acknowledge that I was in the choir room."

"So now this is my fault because I made the woman who walked out on me feel as though she was invisible?" Rachel screamed. "That's how you made me feel. You didn't try to talk to me when you saw me in the halls or when you were monitoring my lunch hour. You didn't try to console me when I was banned from performing at Sectionals. You couldn't even tell me that you quit teaching."

"Because I didn't think you cared anymore." Shelby said, trying to keep her cool even though the teen was yelling at her.

"I have always cared." Rachel said, choking up at her own admission. She pursed her lips and looked down before looking back at Shelby. "I have always cared about you and wanted you to feel the same way towards me."

"Rachel, just because I did those things doesn't mean I didn't care." Shelby said, taking a step towards Rachel.

"You have a funny way of showing it." Rachel muttered. She wiped her eyes and glanced at her watch. "I have to go, I have school in the morning."

"Can we at least talk again?" Shelby asked before Rachel could walk away. Rachel gave a small hesitant nod and Shelby reached into her handbag, pulling out one of her Vocal Lesson business cards. "Here's my number, call me when you are ready to talk. I'll be waiting."

"Okay." Rachel said and slipped the card into her purse before she headed off to her apartment.

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><p><strong>Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about my other stories. They will be updated before the end of the weekend.<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

Rachel sat in her last class of the her first year of college. Summer break was starting the next day and in a week she was heading back to Ohio to visit her dads for a month. 19 days had passed since Rachel ran into Shelby and she had yet to make her phone call. Every night after coming home from the theater, Kurt would ask her if the estranged mother and daughter had made any plans to meet up and was always met with a no.

The buzzing in her pants pocket, broke her from the final she in the middle of taking. Glancing around the room to see if she had disturbed anyone, Rachel pulled out her phone and read the offending text message. Lunch at Soy & Sake?

Rachel couldn't resist saying no to Kurt's lunch offer, she loved their Tofu Vegetable Pot. Sending off a quick yes, Rachel turned off her phone and returned to her final. As soon as she finished, she took her paper to the the instructor and hurried out the door to meet her friend. Sitting on the bus, Rachel turned on her phone and saw that Kurt had arrived to the restaurant nearly 5 minutes ago. Replying that she was on her way, Rachel sat back and relaxed the rest of the ride.

"Hey Diva." Kurt greeted Rachel as she walked into the building. "I got us our table."

"Great, I am starving." Rachel smiled and the two walked back to their usual spot in the back corner. They sat down and Rachel started discussing her day when Kurt interrupted her.

"Blaine is done with his audition and on his way here, I am going to go wait for him up front." Kurt said and got up from the table leaving Rachel, to look through her menu to see if anything new had been added.

"Sorry I am a little late, I had to wait for Beth's sitter." Shelby said, sitting at the table and surprising Rachel so bad she was nearly speechless. This was noticed by Shelby. "What's wrong?"

"Um, I-I-I'm just wondering why you are here." Rachel stammered.

"Well isn't this a small world?" Kurt said walking back to the table with Blaine on his arm.

"Kurt what did you do?" Rachel glared and Shelby glanced back and forth between the two friends.

"I have no idea what you are talking about." Kurt said, playing dumb. "I am sure there is a good reason as to how you and your mother are both here at the same time. I must say Miss Corcoran, your hair is as radiant as ever, did you get highlights or something?"

"She is not my mot-" Rachel said but stopped herself. "Kurt, you shouldn't have done this and Blaine-"

"-Don't look at me, I told Kurt this was very risky and you weren't going to like having Shelby sprung on you."

"So you knew about this?" Rachel glared even harder at Blaine.

"Okay fine, so maybe I stole Shelby's number from the card in your purse and pretended to be you and invited her here and then lured you here but now that you two are face to face you can work out your problems. Blaine and I will be right over there if you need anything." Kurt said and pulled Blaine to a table, 15 feet away.

"Clearly you aren't ready for us to talk yet so I am going to go." Shelby said, standing up.

"Wait." Rachel stopped her. "If you want to stay, I guess you can."

The nearly sarcastic and unthrilled tone in Rachel's voice told Shelby she wasn't exactly wanted and so she shook her head. "I don't want to have lunch with you because you were forced here under false pretenses. I wanted you to be willing and able to talk to me on your own."

Shelby grabbed her purse from the back of the chair and strode out of the restaurant. Kurt ran over to the table and pulled Rachel up by her arm.

"Go after her."

"What?"

"Go. You and I both know that you wanted to see her again but you were too angry and stubborn to admit it."

"I have a right to be angry."

"Yeah you do but you are missing out on having your mother in your life. I would kill to be in your shoes."

"She doesn't want to eat with me because we were brought here under lies." Rachel narrowed her eyes.

"To which I am sorry for but go out there and make a dinner plan with her on your own." Kurt said walking her to the door.

"I am being forced to again."

"Shut up and go." Kurt said pushing her out the door.

Rachel scanned the sidewalks around her to find Shelby but the older brunette was sitting in a cab as it pulled away from the curb. It was too late and she retreated back into the building and sat next to her friends.

"I missed her." Rachel said, half bummed and half relieved.

"Call her?" Blaine suggested taking a sip of his lemon water.

"Maybe it's a sign that we're just not meant to have a relationship."

"Or it is a sign that someone needs to stay out of your business and let you do things in your own time." Blaine said tilting his head at Kurt.

"What?" Kurt gasped, holding his hands in the air. "I'm I really that bad for wanting Rachel and Shelby to be close? Do you guys have any idea what I would do to be in your shoes? I would rather have my mom alive and be able to see her and hear her voice. Instead I have to look at a grave."

"I'll see you guys back at the apartment." Rachel said standing up.

She hopped on the bus and began typing on her phone. Three stops later, Rachel jumped on another bus and sat back after not finding anything interesting to do on her phone. Reaching the apartment building, she opened the door and walked over to the set of elevators. A sign read out of order and Rachel groaned. She didn't want to climb the 8 flights of stairs but she had no other option. Finally arriving at her door, Rachel let out a deep breath of air to help regulate her breathing.

"Rachel?" Shelby, gently gasped as she opened the door. Rachel had to knock three times as the sound was covered by Beth crying. Rachel leaned in and saw the toddler still crying.

"You're busy, I can come back another time." Rachel said and started to turn around.

"No! No! Wait, please come in." Shelby said, stopping Rachel. "Beth is just looking for her blankie. It kinda got lost while we were playing."

"Oh." Rachel said as she stepped into the apartment. Shelby closed the door behind Rachel and moved to get in front of her. She cleared off some toys on the love seat so Rachel could sit down. "Thanks."

"Sure." Shelby nodded and picked up Beth, trying to sooth her. "What can I do for you?"

"Um, I wanted to apologize for Kurt's actions. He was only trying to help us get this, whatever we have between us, on the right track. His mom died when he was little and he made me see that I am lucky that mine is still alive, even if we're not on good terms. I guess, I just want to know what it is you are looking for from me?"

"To be honest Rachel, I want you as my daughter and for you to call me mom but I know that isn't going to be possible because of the past. Now, I just want to know who you are and what you are doing with your life. If a mother daughter relationship comes of it, I will of course be wildly accepting of it but if we only remain friends I understand." Shelby tried to explain over Beth's cries for her blanket. "Would you excuse me for a second? I am going to see if she left the blanket in my room."

"Sure." Rachel nodded and was slightly uncomfortable when she placed the nearly 3 year old girl on the floor and left the room.

"Blankie." Beth cried to Rachel.

"You're mommy is looking." Rachel cooed to the little girl. She sat back in the love seat and moved a pillow that was making her arm uncomfortable and saw a plum colored piece of material sticking out of the cushion. Pulling on the soft, fuzzy item, Beth squealed.

"Blankie." She happily said, clinging to the blanket. Beth gave Rachel a huge grin and climbed onto her lap. "Read, please?"

"You want me to read to you?" Rachel asked and Beth nodded, pointing to a small book on the side table next to them.

Shelby heard Beth squealing for her blanket and knew she found it. She stopped herself from completely walking into the livingroom, when she saw Rachel reading to Beth. She grinned at the sight before her. Beth leaning against Rachel, clutching her blanket with her thumb in her mouth. Rachel had one hand laid on Beth's tummy and used the other to hold the book.

Beth began to grow fussy a few pages in, after noticing her mom was gone too long. Shelby decided to make her appearance known before Rachel had to deal with a tantrum.

"Mommy." Beth said, running over to her mom. "I yike her. She read to me."

"Yeah? That sounds great, I am glad you like Mommy's new friend." Shelby smiled as she held her younger daughter in her arms. "Can you say thank you to Rachel for reading to you?"

"Sank you for reading to me." Beth smiled from behind her thumb.

"You are welcome, Beth." Rachel smiled at the girl. "Do Puck and Quinn still see her?"

"Oh yes. In fact they were just here over Mother's Day weekend and spent sometime with her. It was my first mother's day without her but I was glad she got to spend time with Quinn too."

"That's great." Rachel said, happy that her previous glee friends were still seeing their daughter after everything that had happened.

"I get down please?" Beth asked Shelby and the mom set the girl on her feet and she ran over to Rachel. "I have my book?"

"Sure, here you go." Rachel smiled and handed it to Beth, who ran back to her mom. Beth let out a few yawns, letting the two know she was tired.

"I seepy. Sing to me please?" Beth asked.

"That's mommy's girl." Shelby gushed at how Beth was rocking her manners, even with a little help. "I am gonna go put her down for her nap, I'll be right back."

Rachel nodded to Shelby and the woman turned around and walked to Beth's toddler room. She laid Beth on the toddler sized bed and sang her a short and sweet lullaby. The song wasn't even finished before Beth fell asleep and Shelby quietly exited the room. Coming back out into the main living area of the apartment, she noticed Rachel was gone. A quick scan of the kitchen and bathroom, Shelby wondered what she did wrong that made Rachel leave.

Hot tears slid down Rachel's face as she ran down the 8 flights of stairs. She didn't even bother with getting on the bus and hailed a cab instead. Kurt and Blaine were nestled on the couch watching A Patti Lapone TV concert special, when she burst through the door.

"Hey Rach, wanna watch this with us?" Kurt asked, shoving popcorn in her mouth but stopped talking when he noticed she was upset. Rachel shook her head and ran to her room, slamming the door. The bowl was discarded on the coffee table and the two guys walked to Rachel's room, knocking on the door. "Rachel?"

"Are you okay?" Blaine asked. There was no answer and Kurt turned the door knob. Rachel was laying on her bed, with her head buried in the pillows. The friends surrounded Rachel and began to rub her back and arms.

"She called her mommy's girl." Rachel cried.

"Who called who that?" Kurt asked.

"Shelby called Beth that."

"You went to see Shelby?" Blaine asked and Rachel nodded.

"Beth gets to have her as a mom from the very beginning but I don't. This isn't fair."

"You can still have Shelby as your mom." Kurt assured her.

"I hate her too much." Rachel said, angrily wiping her tears. "I really hate her and I never want to see her again."


	3. Chapter 3

"Are you sure you want to do this?" HIram asked sitting across from Rachel with Leroy at his side. The three were enjoying the hot June sun on the back porch of the Berry house.

"Yeah, I just have a lot on my mind and I don't want to ruin our time together. Maybe talking to Shelby will make me feel better." Rachel said as she scrolled through her phone for Shelby's contact information.

Rachel had only been in Ohio for two weeks and couldn't get Shelby off her mind. She had shared with her fathers about the recent events with her mom the night before and Rachel wondered if she should head back to NYC to speak with Shelby but then decided a phone call would be easier. Plus it would give them some time to deal with whatever came from the call before they talked face to face.

"We'll give you some privacy." Leroy said, standing up and pulling Hiram into the house. Rachel's finger hovered over the send button and she glanced up when she heard some whispering.

"Has she began the call yet?" Hiram asked Leroy.

"Shush, I can't hear anything with your big mouth blabbering away." Leroy countered and Rachel rolled her eyes.

"Thanks for the privacy." Rachel loudly said and both the men's faces appeared in the kitchen window just off to the side.

"Sorry honey." Hiram said. "We'll really give you some space now."

"I'm sure." Rachel laughed. Standing up, Rachel decided to go for a walk while she talked to Shelby. Walking to the frong of the house, Rachel began a steady pace down the block. Hitting send, Rachel put the phone to her ear. Shelby answered in just a few rings. "Hi Shelby, it's Rachel. Do you have a few minutes?"

"Sure of course, Beth just went down for a nap." Shelby replied and closed the door to Beth's room and went into her own and shut the door. "I've been trying to get a hold of you."

"Yeah, I know. We both know I was avoiding you so there's no reason to deny it." Rachel said and her statment hung in the air. "But, um, I want to apologize for ignoring your calls and for running out on you."

"Why did you leave like that? Did I do something wrong?"

"No, it was me." Rachel answered and knew being honest was best. "I was jealous of Beth. Stupid I know but she's got you as her mom and I don't."

"But you could." Shelby lightly said, waiting for Rachel's reaction.

"You're right, I can but not the way Beth has you. She's had you since birth."

"It's not going to be exactly the same Rachel but our relationship can come pretty close. We can have that mother daughter bond."

"I know, which is why when I get back to the city, I was hoping you'd want to go out to dinner just the two of us to talk."

"That would be great. When are you coming back to the city?"

"Not next week Thursday but the following Thursday so a little over two weeks." Rachel said, trying to count the days in her head. "My flight will be in around 2:30 in the afternoon."

"I could pick you up from the airport? If you want?" Shelby offered.

"That works for me." Rachel shrugged.

Two weeks later, Shelby outside the airport next to her car. Her attention was focused on the doors Rachel said she'd be coming out of. Rachel spotted Shelby as she walked to the doors and stopped to take a deep breath. When she finally did go outside, Shelby walked up to her and took one of the two suitcases.

"Hi."

"Hi." The two women uncomfortably exchanged greetings. They walked to the trunk and tossed the bags inside.

"So, how was your trip?" Shelby asked as she drove to Shelby's apartment.

"It was okay." Rachel replied and continued in the small talk with Shelby until the reached her apartment.

The two had agreed to order in at Shelby's that way they could have a more private conversation. It was still early but Beth's sitter was going to be dropping the toddler off at 7 so they decided to wait until Beth got home to eat. Rachel took only her purse into the building with her and followed Shelby to the door.

"Have a seat." Shelby said, locking the door and finding a spot to sit on the couch. "Where do we start?"

"I want to know what happened when you left Senior year. I thought you came back then to make up for the mistakes you made."

"I did but then I got caught up in the Puck and Quinn drama. Another part of me was waiting for you to come to me. When I first walked into the auditorium, you were so resistant towards me."

"Do you blame me?" Rachel asked. "I mean you sent one of your students to date me and to find out who you were, only to ditch me."

"Jesse was suppose to befriend you." Shelby pointed out. "He wasn't suppose to date you, he fell in love with you on his own."

"Some love." Rachel scoffed.

"What does that mean?"

"First he stabbed me in the back by returning to Vocal Adrenaline."

"Where he belonged."

"Yeah but that didn't mean he needed to egg me."

"What?" Shelby's eyes went wide.

"Jesse asked me to meet him in the parking lot, where him and the rest of the seniors threw eggs at me. Knowing I was Vegan, by the way and Jesse smashed one into my forehead."

"That little troll." Shelby gritted. "Had I known he did that, I would have never given him that stellar letter of recommendation to UCLA."

"It's all in the past." Rachel shook her head. "But anyway, we are getting off track. Even after Quinn made you quit working at McKinley, why didn't you let me know that you were still interested in me? How come I didn't get a goodbye or an explanation?"

"I didn't think you cared." Shelby said, a tear falling down her cheek. "I tried to talk to you at the after party at Sectionals but you ignored me."

"I didn't see you. I didn't even know you were still around, I thought you had gone home to Beth." Rachel sighed and rubbed her face with her hands. "This is so messed up."

"I know and I don't know how to fix it." Shelby apologetically said.

"It's not completely your fault. Had my dads not even asked you to sign the contract, none of this would have happened. Had you not ditched me sophomore year, things would be different. Had I not been so-"

"Stop." Shelby gently said. "You can play the 'what ifs' and the 'had nots' but nothing can change the past."

Rachel kept her head in her hands, her face out of Shelby's view. Her small frame shook slightly as she tried to keep herself from crying. She was tired of crying over her non-existent relationship with Shelby and wondering if there was something about her that made her unloveable to her mother.

"I can't." She finally whispered after the two had been quiet for several minutes.

"I know." Shelby replied in a whisper. "I've hurt you too much. I understand but I'd really like it if we could stay in touch."

"No." Rachel shook her head.

"Rachel, please. I would like to know what you have going on in your life, even if you don't think I deserve to-"

"Shelby." Rachel cut in. "I meant that I can't handle it if you took off on me again. I want to give this another try but if you walk away, I'm done." Rachel told Shelby, looking up at the woman. Shelby's eyes went from heartbroken to hopeful in a split second.

"I won't. I swear." Shelby smiled, through teary eyes. Without asking Rachel, she took it upon herself to initiate a hug. Rachel was stiff at first but relaxed into her mother's arms. "I really mean it Rachel."

"Thank you." Rachel responded.

Rachel and Shelby took the time to tell each other about their lives. Rachel was in awe over Shelby's stories about trying to make it on Broadway and even though Shelby wasn't successful, Rachel was still obsessed with hearing every little detail. Shelby was a bit self conscious at first with sharing her stories but once she noticed Rachel didn't care whether she was a hit or miss, she became more theatrical in telling her story. The tense air faded away and the two were more comfortable together.

"So needless to say, when you go on an audition make sure your clothes aren't extremely skin tight." Shelby laughed as she got up to open the door for Beth and her sitter.

"Or to at least have underwear on underneath said skin tight clothes." Rachel joked. Shelby lightly swatted Rachel's arm as she walked by. "Hey, you were the one who decided to tell me about splitting your skirt in half. I didn't force you too."

"And now I am regretting telling you about it." Shelby sighed.

"Mommy!" Beth screeched, jumping into her mother's arms.

"Hi, honey. Did you have fun with Megan?" Shelby asked, kissing Beth's cheek. Rachel watched from her seat in the livingroom with a smile on her face. "Was she good for you?"

"She was perfect." Megan replied.

"That's my good girl." Shelby grinned, bouncing Beth slightly.

"I should get going." Megan said, placing Beth's bag on the floor next to the door.

"Okay, well thank you for watching her." Shelby said, reaching into her pocket and giving Megan the pre-written check.

"You're welcome. Have a good evening." Megan replied, smiling to Rachel.

"Night." Shelby said, closing the door behind the girl who had to be about Rachel's age. "Beth, look who is here."

"You back." Beth grinned to Rachel.

"Yes I am." Rachel replied as the girl ran over to her. "We're gonna have dinner together too."

"Really?" Beth gasped and turned back to Shelby. "She's staying fo dinner?"

"Yup." Shelby nodded, glad that Beth was excited to be around Rachel. "And we even have a surprise for you."

"You do?" Beth's eyes got wide. "Whats is it?"

Shelby looked to Rachel to make sure she was okay with this as they had talked about before and Rachel nodded her okay. Shelby took Beth's hand and walked her over to the couch, across from Rachel. Beth was pulled onto Shelby's lap and Shelby had the girl look at her.

"Rachel is going to be around more often." Shelby said.

"She is?"

"Yup." Shelby nodded. She glanced up at Rachel and silently asked for her approval to tell Beth the rest. After a quick thought, Rachel agreed and nodded back to Shelby. The three year old wasn't going to be able to comprehend the full story yet so Shelby decided to explain it in the easiest way possible until Beth got older and could understand Rachel's situation. "She's going to be spending more time with us because I am her mommy too."

"No you my mommy?" Beth shook her head and narrowed her eyes at Rachel. "My mommy."

"Be nice Beth." Shelby warned. "You have to share Mommy with Rachel because I love Rachel just like I love you."

"No share." Beth pouted.

"She's still a little young to understand but she'll get use to it." Shelby assured Rachel.

"No it's okay. I figured she'd have a hard time getting it." Rachel shrugged.

"Good." Shelby smiled, looking at her watch. "It's getting a little late, we should get something to eat so Beth's bedtime doesn't get messed up."

"Sure, right." Rachel agreed and stood up with her mother and baby sister. While waiting for her mom to get her stuff, Rachel's phone vibrated in her pocket from a text message.

"I need to change her clothes." Shelby said, noticing the grape juice stain on the yellow dress. "Give me one second."

"That's fine, I need to make a phone call so I'll wait downstairs for you."

"Okay, hon." Shelby replied, walking Beth to her bedroom.

Rachel got out onto the sidewalk and leaned against the apartment building and called Kurt.

"I got your message, what's wrong?" Rachel asked. Kurt had sent her a message telling her to call him ASAP.

"It's not good." Kurt said. "One of the water pipes exploded in the ceiling of your bedroom."

"Oh no. How bad is the damage?" Rachel sighed, this is not what she needed right now.

"Bad. Almost everything in your room is trashed." Kurt sadly said. "I tried calling you earlier but you must have been on the plane."

"Sorry, I didn't check my missed calls. What about the rest of the apartment?"

"Other than the soggy hallway floor, it's all okay." Kurt replied. "Where are you?"

"At Shelby's we are about to go eat but I am just gonna have her drop me off at home instead." Rachel said as Shelby and Beth came out of the lobby door. Shelby only caught the tail end of the sentence but heard enough to be concerned.

"Alright, well see you in a bit then."

"Okay. Bye." Rachel, hung up the phone and slipped it into her pocket. Giving Shelby an apologetic glance, she sighed and moved closer to her mom. "I'm gonna have to take a rain check on dinner."

"Oh? How come?"

"My bedroom was the victim of a water pipe explosion."

"No way! I am sorry Rach!" Shelby gasped.

"Thanks but now I have to spend my night finding out if I have anything left."

Shelby drove Rachel to her apartment and the three hurried up the stairs, each carrying a bag. Rachel unlocked the door and let Shelby and Beth go in first. Kurt and Blaine were sitting in the livingroom and the two boys jumped up at the sight of the ex-VA coach.

"Hi boys." Shelby brightly greeted.

"Hi Miss Corcoran." Kurt smiled, nervously.

"Hello." Blaine said, placing a calm hand on Kurt's lower back.

"I feel like I am in high school again." Kurt muttered to his boyfriend.

"Well you're not. She can't give you detention or any of that."

"But that glare." Kurt shivered.

"I think I am scaring him." Shelby whispered, turning to Rachel.

"You do have that way about you." Rachel chuckled.

"It doesn't phase you." Shelby pointed out.

"Of course not." Rachel laughed.

"I saw you in Wicked, Kurt and I just have to say you are the best Fieyro by far." Shelby grinned.

"Really? You saw me?" Kurt blushed, excitedly.

"Yup as soon as I heard you got the part, I went out and saw you. I was so proud of how well you did. I always admired the way you put yourself out there."

"Thank you. That means so much to me." Kurt giddily said.

"I am gonna go check on my room." Rachel said, seeing that Kurt wasn't going to pass out from fear.

"I'll help you." Shelby said, following Rachel.

"You sure?" Rachel asked, stopping in the hall. "You aren't exactly dressed to go into a water drenched room."

"True but I want to help you." Shelby shrugged.

"I have some clothes in my suitcase you can change into." Rachel suggested.

"Perfect." Shelby gratefully said. "Do you think the guys would mind if I asked them to watch Beth?"

"I'm sure they'd be okay with it."

Kurt and Blaine agreed to watch Beth and once Shelby was in a set of Rachel's sweats, the two woman walked barefoot into the soaked bedroom. Rachel swore under her breath seeing the damaged and still dripping ceiling. The posters that filled her walls were torn or on the floor. Shelby placed a hand on her increasingly upset daughter's shoulder.

"Come on, lets get started." Shelby said, walking past Rachel with the roll of trash bags Rachel had retrieved from the kitchen.

"Okay. I guess we will do my clothes first." Rachel said, opening her dresser.

While the dresser itself was contorted from the water, most of her clothes were dry and were placed into a bag for keeps. The wet clothes were put into a separate bag for cleaning. Rachel and Shelby continued working quietly. As Shelby finished sorting out Rachel's clothes, Rachel opened her closet door and deemed everything in there to be wet. Shoving those clothes into a bag, Rachel reached onto the shelf and pulled down three shoe boxes that threatened to rip. The items in the first box were thrown away as they really were of no importance to Rachel.

"Oh no." Rachel whispered, opening the second box.

"Rach? What's wrong?" Shelby asked, tying up her fourth bag. Walking up behind Rachel she saw that the tape she had made for Rachel was destroyed. "I am so sorry honey."

"I knew I should have taken it with me." Rachel quietly said. "I knew I should have and I didn't. Now it's ruined."

"I can make you another one." Shelby offered.

"It won't be the same." Rachel replied, a few tears running down her cheeks. "It came from your heart."

"It will still come from my heart." Shelby told her. "Or maybe I could sing a different song?"

"No." Rachel sighed. "It's okay."

Shelby watched sadly as Rachel hesitantly stood over the garbage bag with it. Shelby reached out and took the plastic cassette from Rachel.

"You don't have to throw it away."Shelby said, placing it in a pile of keep stuff. Rachel continued going through the other boxes, while Shelby got to work on Rachel's book shelf. Hearing Rachel drop the box with a sigh, Shelby turned around and saw that Rachel had stopped working. "Rachel?"

"I need a glass of water." Rachel sniffled as she moved to leave the room but Shelby grabbed her arm and pulled her into a hug. "That tape was important to me."

"I know." Shelby soothed, stroking Rachel's hair. "Come on, lets go get some water."

Shelby took Rachel's hand and led her out of the room and into the kitchen. Several dishes were drying on the counter and Shelby picked up one of the cups and turned on the cold water tap. When she turned around with the cup, she saw Rachel pulling the star cup from her suitcases.

"I use it a lot." Rachel said in a small voice.

"You do?" Shelby asked, pouring the water from one cup to the other. "Because of me?"

"For various reasons but it really makes me feel close to you. It's almost like you were comforting me all those times."

"Well, now that we are moving forward, if water doesn't help you can always call me and I'll be right over."

"Really?"

"Of course." Shelby nodded. "That's what moms do."

"Miss Corcoran?" Kurt asked, walking into the kitchen. "Beth is complaining that she is hungry."

"Call me Shelby." She replied. "If you guys want we can order a pizza or two? I'll buy."

"That's kind of you but Kurt and I have plans with friends tonight and we should get going."

"Right, well thanks for helping me out with Beth."

"It was our pleasure." Kurt said, making a silly face at Beth that caused her to laugh. "Rachel, Blaine and I are gonna clean up our room before we leave so you can sleep in our bed."

"Where are you two gonna sleep?" Rachel asked.

"Out here in the livingroom." Blaine answered.

"No, no. There are two of you and one of me. I will sleep on the couch."

"It's not a big deal." Blaine said. "Besides we all know how cranky you get the next day after sleeping on the couch."

"But you two have to work in the morning." Rachel responded.

"You could stay with me." Shelby threw out. All three stopped talking and Rachel stared at Shelby like she had grown a second head. "I mean, I have an extra room and-"

"I'd love too." Rachel blurted out, with way too much excitement than she had intended too. "It's only gonna be for two, maybe three weeks."

"How ever long you need to stay, is perfectly okay with me."


End file.
